DENVER — Houston Texans right tackle Derek Newton has been carted off the field after hurting his left knee while blocking Denver Broncos pass rusher Von Miller.

Newton was dropping back to pass block midway through the first quarter when his left knee just buckled. He stayed down for several minutes, pounding the grass in frustration. Teammates Xavier Su’a-Filo and Duane Brown helped into onto the cart. Newton pounded the side of the cart as he was driven away Monday night.

The 28-year-old Newton didn’t play last week because of an ankle injury.

The Broncos last spring entered the middle rounds of the NFL draft on the hunt for game-breaking talent. And when Carlos Henderson (third-round pick) and Isaiah McKenzie (fifth) started making plays under the glaring August sun at training camp, it appeared Denver would have a youthful injection to its sagging offense in 2017.